[Federal Register: May 1, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 84)]
[Notices]
[Page 25341-25345]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr01my00-71]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families
Refugee Resettlement Program; Proposed Availability of Formula
Allocation Funding for FY 2000 Targeted Assistance Grants for Services
to Refugees in Local Areas of High Need
AGENCY: Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), ACF, HHS.
ACTION: Notice of proposed availability of formula allocation funding
for FY 2000 targeted assistance grants to States for services to
refugees in local areas of high need.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces the proposed availability of funds and
award procedures for FY 2000 targeted assistance grants for services to
refugees under the Refugee Resettlement Program (RRP). These grants are
for service provision in localities with large refugee populations,
high refugee concentrations, and high use of public assistance, and
where specific needs exist for supplementation of currently available
resources.
This notice continues the eligibility of those 50 counties located
in 29 States that previously qualified for and received targeted
assistance program (TAP) grants beginning in FY 1999 as a result of the
three-year qualification process. The FY 2000 TAP formula allocations
are based on the same formula as in FY 1999, updated to reflect
arrivals during the five-year period from FY 1995 through FY 1999.
DATES: Comments on this notice must be received by May 31, 2000.
ADDRESSES: Address written comments, in duplicate, to: Gayle A. Smith,
Office of Refugee Resettlement, Administration for Children and
Families, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20447.
Application Deadline: The deadline for applications will be
established by the final notice. Applications should not be sent in
response to this notice of proposed allocations.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gayle Smith, Director, Division of
Refugee Self-Sufficiency, (202) 205-3590.
[[Page 25342]]
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Purpose and Scope
This notice announces the proposed availability of funds for grants
for targeted assistance for services to refugees in counties where,
because of factors such as unusually large refugee populations, high
refugee concentrations, and high use of public assistance, there exists
and can be demonstrated a specific need for supplementation of
resources for services to this population.
The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) has available $49,477,000
in FY 2000 funds for the targeted assistance program (TAP) as part of
the FY 2000 appropriation for the Department of Health and Human
Services (Pub. L. No. 106-113).
The Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) proposes
to use the $49,477,000 in targeted assistance funds as follows:
$44,529,300 will be allocated to States under the five-year
population formula, as set forth in this notice.
$4,947,700 (10 percent of the total) will be used to award
discretionary grants to States under a separate grant announcement.
The purpose of targeted assistance grants is to provide, through a
process of local planning and implementation, direct services intended
to result in the economic self-sufficiency and reduced welfare
dependency of refugees through job placements.
The targeted assistance program reflects the requirements of
section 412(c)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA),
which provides that targeted assistance grants shall be made available
``(i) primarily for the purpose of facilitating refugee employment and
achievement of self-sufficiency, (ii) in a manner that does not
supplant other refugee program funds and that assures that not less
than 95 percent of the amount of the grant award is made available to
the county or other local entity.''
II. Authorization
Targeted assistance projects are funded under the authority of
section 412(c)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), as
amended by the Refugee Assistance Extension Act of 1986 (Pub. L. No.
99-605), 8 U.S.C. 1522(c); section 501(a) of the Refugee Education
Assistance Act of 1980 (Pub. L. No. 96-422), 8 U.S.C. 1522 note,
insofar as it incorporates by reference with respect to Cuban and
Haitian entrants the authorities pertaining to assistance for refugees
established by section 412(c)(2) of the INA, as cited above; section
584(c) of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related
Programs Appropriations Act, 1988, as included in the FY 1988
Continuing Resolution (Pub. L. No. 100-202), insofar as it incorporates
by reference with respect to certain Amerasians from Vietnam the
authorities pertaining to assistance for refugees established by
section 412(c)(2) of the INA, as cited above, including certain
Amerasians from Vietnam who are U.S. citizens, as provided under title
II of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs
Appropriations Acts, 1989 (Pub. L. No. 100-461), 1990 (Pub. L. No. 101-
167), and 1991 (Pub. L. No. 101-513).
III. Use of Funds
Targeted assistance funding must be used to assist refugee families
to achieve economic independence in accordance with regulations at 45
CFR Part 400. The term ``refugee'' includes persons who meet all
requirements of 45 CFR 400.43 (as amended by 65 FR 15409 (March 22,
2000)) and 45 CFR 401.2 (Cuban and Haitian entrants). In addition to
the statutory requirement that TAP funds be used ``primarily for the
purpose of facilitating refugee employment'' (section 412(c)(2)(B)(i)),
funds awarded under this program are intended to help fulfill the
Congressional intent that ``employable refugees should be placed on
jobs as soon as possible after their arrival in the United States''
(section 412(a)(1)(B)(i) of the INA). Therefore, in accordance with 45
CFR 400.313, targeted assistance funds must be used primarily for
employability services designed to enable refugees to obtain jobs with
less than one year's participation in the targeted assistance program
in order to achieve economic self-sufficiency as soon as possible.
Under 45 CFR 400.316, a State may provide the same scope of services
under targeted assistance as may be provided to refugees under 45 CFR
400.154 and 45 CFR 400.155, with the exception of 45 CFR 400.155(h).
Targeted assistance services may continue to be provided after a
refugee has entered a job to help the refugee retain employment or move
to a better job. Targeted assistance funds may not be used for long-
term training programs such as vocational training that last for more
than a year or educational programs that are not intended to lead to
employment within a year.
States may not provide services funded under this notice, except
for referral and interpreter services, to refugees who have been in the
United States for more than 60 months (five years).
In accordance with 45 CFR 400.314, States are required to provide
targeted assistance services to refugees in the following order of
priority, except in certain individual extreme circumstances: (a)
Refugees who are cash assistance recipients, particularly long-term
recipients; (b) unemployed refugees who are not receiving cash
assistance; and (c) employed refugees in need of services to retain
employment or to attain economic independence.
In accordance with 45 CFR 400.317, if targeted assistance funds are
used for the provision of English language training, such training must
be provided in a concurrent, rather than sequential, time period with
employment or with other employment-related activities.
Refugees who are participating in TAP-funded or social services-
funded employment services or have accepted employment are eligible for
day care services for children. For an employed refugee, TAP-funded day
care should be limited to one year after the refugee becomes employed.
States and counties, however, are expected to use day care funding from
other publicly funded mainstream programs as a prior resource and are
encouraged to work with service providers to assure maximum access to
other publicly funded resources for day care.
Reflecting section 412(a)(1)(A)(iv) of the INA, States must
``ensure that women have the same opportunities as men to participate
in training and instruction.'' In addition, in accordance with 45 CFR
400.317, targeted assistance services must be provided, to the maximum
extent feasible, in a manner that includes the use of bilingual/
bicultural women on service agency staffs to ensure adequate service
access by refugee women.
In accordance with 45 CFR 400.317, targeted assistance services
must be provided in a manner that is culturally and linguistically
compatible with a refugee's language and cultural background, to the
maximum extent feasible. In light of the increasingly diverse
population of refugees who are resettling in this country, refugee
service agencies will need to develop practical ways of providing
culturally and linguistically appropriate services to a changing ethnic
population. Services funded under this notice must be refugee-specific
services that are designed specifically to meet refugee needs and are
in keeping with the rules and objectives of the refugee program.
Vocational or job-skills training, on-the-job training, or English
language training, however, need not be refugee-specific.
[[Page 25343]]
Finally, in order to provide culturally and linguistically
compatible services in as cost-efficient a manner as possible in a time
of limited resources, ORR strongly encourages States and counties to
promote and give special consideration to the provision of services
through coalitions of refugee service organizations, such as coalitions
of Mutual Assistance Associations (MAAs), voluntary resettlement
agencies, or a variety of service providers. ORR believes it is
essential for refugee-serving organizations to form close partnerships
in the provision of services to refugees in order to be able to respond
adequately to a changing refugee picture. Coalition-building and
consolidation of providers is particularly important in communities
with multiple service providers in order to ensure better coordination
of services and maximum use of funding for services by minimizing the
funds used for multiple administrative overhead costs.
The award of funds to States under this notice will be contingent
upon the completeness of a State's application as described in section
VIII below.
IV. (Reserved for Discussion of Comments in the Final Notice)
V. Eligible Grantees
Eligible grantees are those agencies of State governments that are
responsible for the refugee program under 45 CFR 400.5 in States
containing counties that qualify for FY 2000 targeted assistance
awards.
The Director of ORR proposes to determine the eligibility of
counties for inclusion in the FY 2000 targeted assistance program on
the basis of the method described in section VI of this notice.
The use of targeted assistance funds for services to Cuban and
Haitian entrants are limited to States that have an approved State plan
under the Cuban/Haitian Entrant Program (CHEP). The State agency will
submit a single application on behalf of all county governments that
are qualified counties in that State. Subsequent to the approval of the
State's application by ORR, local targeted assistance plans will be
developed by the county government or other designated entity and
submitted to the State.
A State with more than one qualified county is permitted, but not
required, to determine the allocation amount for each qualified county
within the State. However, if a State chooses to determine county
allocations differently from those set forth in the final notice, in
accordance with Sec. 400.319, the FY 2000 allocations proposed by the
State must be based on the State's population of refugees who arrived
in the U.S. during the most recent five-year period. A State may use
welfare data as an additional factor in the allocation of its targeted
assistance funds if it so chooses; however, a State may not assign a
greater weight to welfare data than it has assigned to population data
in its allocation formula. In addition, if a State chooses to allocate
its FY 2000 targeted assistance funds in a manner different from the
formula set forth in the final notice, the FY 2000 allocations and
methodology proposed by the State must be included in the State's
application for ORR review and approval.
Applications submitted in response to the final notice are not
subject to review by State and area-wide clearinghouses under Executive
Order 12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.''
VI. Qualification and Allocation
A. Qualification
The Director of ORR will determine the qualification of counties
for targeted assistance once every three years, as stated in the FY
1999 notice of proposed availability of targeted assistance allocations
to States which was published in the Federal Register on March 10, 1999
(64 FR 11927). Since ORR determined the qualification of counties for
targeted assistance in FY 1999, those qualifying counties determined
eligible in FY 1999 and listed in this notice as qualified to apply for
FY 2000 TAP funding would remain qualified for TAP funding through FY
2001 on the basis of the most current five-year refugee/entrant arrival
data. ORR does not plan to consider the eligibility of additional
counties for TAP funding until FY 2002, when ORR will again review data
on all counties that could potentially qualify for TAP funds.
B. Allocation Formula
Of the funds available for FY 2000 for targeted assistance,
$44,529,300 would be allocated by formula to States for qualified
counties based on the initial placements of refugees, Amerasians,
entrants (including Havana parolees), and Kurdish asylees in these
counties during the five-year period from FY 1995 through FY 1999
(October 1, 1994-September 30, 1999).
With regard to Havana parolees, in the absence of reliable data on
the State-by-State resettlement of this population, we are crediting
47,805 Havana parolees who arrived in the U.S. during the past five
years according to the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS),
using the following methodology. For FY 1999, we credited the
qualifying counties with Havana parolees according to arrival numbers
supplied to us by the Parolee Orientation Program funded by the
International Affairs Office of the INS. For FY 1995 through FY 1998,
the Havana parolees for each qualifying county in Florida are based on
actual arrival data submitted by the State of Florida; Havana parolees
credited to qualifying counties in other States were prorated based on
the counties' proportion of the four-year (FY 1995 through FY 1998)
entrant population in the U.S.
If a qualifying county does not agree with ORR's population
estimate and believes that its five-year population for FY 1995-FY 1999
was undercounted and wishes ORR to reconsider its population estimate,
the county must provide the following evidence: The county must submit
to ORR a letter from each local voluntary agency that resettled
refugees in the county that attests to the fact that the refugees/
entrants listed in an attachment to the letter were resettled as
initial placements during the five-year period from FY 1995-FY 1999 in
the county making the claim. Documentation must include the name, alien
number, date of birth and date of arrival in the U.S. for each refugee/
entrant claimed. Listings of refugees who are not identified by their
alien numbers will not be considered. Counties should submit such
evidence separately from comments on the proposed formula no later than
30 days from the date of publication of this notice and should be
addressed to: Loren Bussert, Division of Refugee Self-Sufficiency,
Office of Refugee Resettlement, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20447; telephone, (202) 401-4732; E-mail:
lbussert@acf.dhhs.gov. Failure to submit the required documentation
within the required time period will result in forfeiture of
consideration.
VII. Allocations
Table 1 lists the qualifying counties; the number of refugee
(column 3) and entrant (column 4) arrivals in those counties during the
five-year period from October 1, 1994-September 30, 1999; the number of
Havana parolees (column 5) credited to each county during this period,
the total number of arrivals; and the proposed amount of each county's
allocation based on its five-year arrival population.
[[Page 25344]]
Table 1.--Proposed Targeted Assistance Allocations by County: FY 2000
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Total
County State Refugees Entrants Havana arrivals FY Total FY 2000 proposed
\1\ parolees 1995-1999
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1Maricopa County....................... Arizona.................... 8,929 818 514 10,261 $1,214,851
2 Fresno County......................... California................. 1,799 2 1 1,802 213,348
3 Los Angeles County.................... California................. 13,313 351 390 14,054 1,663,923
4 Orange County......................... California................. 8,367 24 19 8,410 995,702
5 Sacramento County..................... California................. 11,646 4 7 11,657 1,380,130
6 San Diego County...................... California................. 6,973 397 344 7,714 913,299
7 San Francisco......................... California................. 6,288 33 34 6,355 752,400
8 Santa Clara County.................... California................. 8,322 47 37 8,406 995,228
9 Yolo County........................... California................. 1,341 5 3 1,349 159,715
10 Denver County......................... Colorado................... 3,085 1 5 3,091 365,959
11 District of Columbia.................. Dist. of Col............... 3,626 15 14 3,655 432,734
12 Broward County........................ Florida.................... 788 1,402 1,277 3,467 410,475
13 Dade County........................... Florida.................... 7,870 26,214 37,721 71,805 8,501,350
14 Duval County.......................... Florida.................... 4,236 21 51 4,308 510,046
15 Hillsborough County................... Florida.................... 1,648 634 1,120 3,402 402,780
16 DeKalb County......................... Georgia.................... 7,902 12 9 7,923 938,043
17 Fulton County......................... Georgia.................... 5,145 196 153 5,494 650,462
18 Cook/Kane............................. Illinois................... 15,790 368 297 16,455 1,948,189
19 Polk County........................... Iowa....................... 3,612 1 3 3,616 428,116
20 Jefferson County \3\.................. Kentucky................... 3,813 1,353 621 5,787 685,152
21 Hampden County........................ Massachusetts.............. 2,281 9 6 2,296 271,835
22 Suffolk County........................ Massachusetts.............. 4,285 53 59 4,397 520,583
23 Ingham County......................... Michigan................... 1,927 647 290 2,864 339,083
24 Kent County........................... Michigan................... 2,836 73 34 2,943 348,436
25 Hennepin County....................... Minnesota.................. 6,601 3 4 6,608 782,354
26 Ramsey County......................... Minnesota.................. 2,024 10 7 2,041 241,644
27 City of St. Louis..................... Missouri................... 8,606 1 1 8,608 1,019,144
28 Lancaster County...................... Nebraska................... 2,378 38 25 2,441 289,002
29 Clark County \4\...................... Nevada..................... 1,566 1,261 867 3,694 437,351
30 Hudson County......................... New Jersey................. 1,327 665 825 2,817 333,519
31 Bernalillo County..................... New Mexico................. 1,051 1,006 828 2,885 341,570
32 Monroe County......................... New York................... 2,730 833 453 4,016 475,474
33 New York.............................. New York................... 42,317 590 532 43,439 5,142,960
34 Oneida County......................... New York................... 4,698 1 1 4,700 556,456
35 Guilford County....................... North Carolina............. 2,430 7 11 2,448 289,831
36 Cass County........................... North Dakota............... 1,791 3 2 1,796 212,637
37 Cuyahoga County....................... Ohio....................... 3,600 7 8 3,615 427,998
38 Multnomah............................. Oregon..................... 11,319 776 404 12,499 1,479,819
39 Erie County........................... Pennsylvania............... 1,922 0 0 1,922 227,555
40 Philadelphia County................... Pennsylvania............... 4,833 44 37 4,914 581,793
41 Minnehaha County \5\.................. South Dakota............... 1,592 0 0 01,592 188,485
42 Davidson County....................... Tennessee.................. 3,248 54 42 3,344 395,913
43 Dallas/Tarrant........................ Texas...................... 11,248 525 485 12,258 1,451,286
44 Harris County......................... Texas...................... 8,525 348 137 9,010 1,066,739
45 Davis/Salt Lake....................... Utah....................... 5,135 1 3 5,139 608,432
46 Fairfax County........................ Virginia................... 3,152 7 10 3,169 375,194
48 City of Richmond...................... Virginia................... 2,310 103 72 2,485 294,212
48 King/Snohomish........................ Washington................. 13,378 51 34 13,463 1,593,952
49 Pierce County......................... Washington................. 2,421 10 7 2,438 288,647
50 Spokane County........................ Washington................. 3,255 0 1 3,256 385,494
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Total................................ ........................... 289,279 39,024 47,805 376,108 44,529,300
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\1\ Refugees includes refugees, Kurdish asylees, and Amerasian immigrants from Vietnam.
\2\ For FY 1999, the Havana parolees for all counties are based on actual data. For previous years, the Havana parolees of Florida counties are based on
actual data, while parolees from other counties are prorated based on each county's proportion. of the four-year (FY 1995-1998) entrant population.
\3\ The allocation for Jefferson County, Kentucky will be awarded to the Kentucky Wilson/Fish project.
\4\ The allocation for Clark County, Nevada will be awarded to the Nevada Wilson/Fish.
\5\ The allocation for Minnehaha County, South Dakota will be awarded to the South Dakota Wilson/Fish project.
[[Page 25345]]
Table 2 provides State totals for proposed targeted assistance
allocations.
Table 2.--Targeted Assistance Proposed Allocations by State: FY 2000
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State FY 2000
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Arizona................................................. $1,214,851
California.............................................. 7,073,745
Colorado................................................ 365,959
District of Columbia.................................... 432,734
Florida................................................. 9,824,651
Georgia................................................. 1,588,505
Illinois................................................ 1,948,189
Iowa.................................................... 428,116
Kentucky................................................ 685,152
Massachusetts........................................... 792,418
Michigan................................................ 687,519
Minnesota............................................... 1,023,998
Missouri................................................ 1,019,144
Nebraska................................................ 289,002
Nevada.................................................. 437,351
New Jersey.............................................. 333,519
New Mexico.............................................. 341,570
New York................................................ 6,174,890
North Carolina.......................................... 289,831
North Dakota............................................ 212,637
Ohio.................................................... 427,998
Oregon.................................................. 1,479,819
Pennsylvania............................................ 809,348
South Dakota............................................ 188,485
Tennesee................................................ 395,913
Texas................................................... 2,518,025
Utah.................................................... 608,432
Virginia................................................ 669,406
Washington.............................................. 2,268,093
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Total............................................... $44,529,300
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VIII. Application and Implementation Process
States that are currently operating under approved management plans
for their FY 1999 targeted assistance program and wish to continue to
do so for their FY 2000 grants may provide the following in lieu of
resubmitting the full currently approved plan:
The State's application for FY 2000 funding shall provide:
Assurance that the State's current management plan for the
administration of the targeted assistance program, as approved by ORR
in FY 1999, will continue to be in full force and effect for the FY
2000 targeted assistance program, subject to any additional assurances
or revisions required by this notice which are not reflected in the
current plan. Any proposed modifications to the approved plan will be
identified in the application and are subject to ORR review and
approval, e.g., if the State assumes local administration of the
program or if the State chooses to determine county allocations
differently. Any proposed changes must address and reference all
appropriate portions of the FY 1999 application content requirements to
ensure complete incorporation in the State's management plan.
A line item budget and justification for State
administrative costs limited to a maximum of five percent of the total
award to the State. Each total budget period funding amount requested
must be necessary, reasonable, and allocable to the project.
All applicants must submit targeted assistance performance
goals as described under Section IX.
IX. Results or Benefits Expected
All applicants must establish targeted assistance proposed
performance goals for each of the six ORR performance outcome measures
for each targeted assistance county's proposed service contract(s) or
sub-grants for the next contracting cycle. Proposed performance goals
must be included in the application for each performance measure. The
six ORR performance measures are: entered employments, cash assistance
reductions due to employment, cash assistance terminations due to
employment, 90-day employment retentions, average wage at placement,
and job placements with available health benefits. Targeted assistance
program activity and progress achieved toward meeting performance
outcome goals are to be reported quarterly on the ORR-6, the
``Quarterly Performance Report.''
X. Reporting Requirements
States will be required to submit quarterly reports on the outcomes
of the targeted assistance program, using the same form which States
use for reporting on refugee social services formula grants. This is
Schedule A and Schedule C, pages 1 and 2 of the ORR-6 Quarterly
Performance Report form (OMB #0970-0036).
XI. The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13)
This notice does not create any reporting or recordkeeping
requirements requiring OMB clearance.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 93.584
Dated: April 25, 2000.
Lavinia Limon
Director, Office of Refugee Resettlement.
[FR Doc. 00-10782 Filed 4-28-00; 8:45 am]
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